Kaps is 11 Years Old...Happy Birthday!!!!
Kaps was 11 years old in May. Back in 2003 I was approached by Val Fowler the then Head teacher at St.Giles School. She approached me as I'd been whining about there being no support groups for parents and carers with children on the Autistic Spectrum. As a keen parent of children with Autism, Val thought I might be good at setting up a group of my own and offered the use of a school classroom.
I invited parents and carers and Derbyshire Service Group also sent a lovely young man to come and help get the group off the ground. Since then the group has evolved from being a parent group to a much needed respite solution for children with Autism. Our very first play-scheme was delivered using the school hall, borrowed toys and some keen trainee teachers and £1,000.
Since then we have had so much fun and done so many adventurous things it’s been a fantastic 11 years and it wouldn't have happened without funding, hard work from all our dedicated staff and of course the exceptional children and young people who have been fabulous to hang out with.
In this our 11th year we are launching some changes. The first is that Kaps is to be split into two sections so that we can accommodate younger members. Mini Kaps will start this year. Adventure Kaps has been named, as this reflects how the group has evolved since 2003 (yes! some of the original members are still with us!) Members of Adventure Kaps will have the chance to do some voluntary work with Mini Kaps (fully supervised of course) and Adventure Kaps will have their own summer venture towards the end of the summer holidays. There will also be the usual residential to look forward to.
I am pleased to announce that Sainsbury's Three Guineas Trust will be backing us again for our Summer Play-scheme ventures.
